Story 1: Mentally Disturbed Former Marine War Veteran, Ian Long, Was Mass Killer That Murdered 12 and Injured Others in Thousand Oaks, California, Borderline Bar and Grill — The War Came Home — Videos —

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John R. Lott Jr. is a columnist for FoxNews.com and the president of the Crime Prevention Research Center. He has authored books such as More Guns, Less Crime, The Bias Against Guns, and Freedomnomics. Lott holds a Ph.D. in economics from UCLA and has worked and taught at the University of Chicago, Yale University, the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Maryland, College Park, and at the American Enterprise Institute.has worked and taught at the University of Chicago, Yale University, the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Maryland, College Park, and at the American Enterprise Institute.

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On November 7, 2018, a former marine opened fire at a country music bar in Thousand Oaks, California, killing 12 people, mostly college students. Police have identified the gunman as 28-year-old Ian David Long, a Marine veteran who had deployed to Afghanistan and had a history of mental health issues, including possible PTSD. The shooting has reignited a national discussion over mental healthcare for veterans returning from war. Earlier this year, Ian Long was evaluated by mental health professionals after police responded to a disturbance at his home, where he lived with his mother—and was cleared by the specialists. For more, we talk with Suzanne Gordon, whose new book probes the history of the Veterans Health Administration providing healthcare to U.S. veterans, generating medical innovations and healing the wounds of war.

Imagine the absolute worst day of your life and reliving it every single night just as vivid, scary & violent as when it happened. And knowing when you go to sleep, that’s what is waiting for you, every night ALL night! And people wonder why vets blow their brains out.

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Site of Thousand Oaks Mass Shooting a Gun-Free Zone

The site of the Thousand Oaks, California, mass shooting was a state-mandated gun-free zone.

By AWR Hawkins

Breitbart News reported that former U.S. Marine Ian David Long opened fired in the Borderline Bar & Grill on Wednesday, killing 12 people. He used a “legally-purchased” handgun to carry out his attack.

Crime Prevention Research Center’s (CPRC) John R. Lott reported that the Borderline Bar & Grill was a gun-free zone by law. CPRC posted a California Department of Justice Bureau of Firearms form explaining that the state of California prohibits the carrying of firearms “in a place having a primary purpose of dispensing alcoholic beverages for on-site consumption.”

The state-mandated gun-free status of places serving alcoholic beverages to be consumed guaranteed that Ian Long would not have to worry about patrons shooting back once he began his attack.

In this way, the gun-free status of the bar played to his favor, and such gun-free policies have been benefiting criminals for over 60 years. CPRC reports that 97.8 percent of “mass public shootings” from 1950 to May 2018 occurred in gun-free zones.

The February 14, Parkland high school shooting, the May 18, Sante Fe high school shooting, and the attack on Borderline patrons, show gun-free zones are still the attractive target.

Ian David Long is shown in a high school yearbook photograph. He was teased for having a lazy eye, according to former classmates

The PTSD-suffering ex-Marine who slaughtered 12 people at a country music bar in California on Wednesday was updating his Instagram story throughout the massacre, it has been claimed.

Ian Long, 28, filmed himself as he opened fire on Borderline Bar and Grill in Thousand Oaks, holding his Glock .45 in one hand and his cell phone in the other, according to police sources cited by TMZ.

The footage was found on his Instagram story after he killed himself before SWAT teams entered the building and has since been wiped from the internet along with his Instagram and Facebook account.

On Facebook, he posted a chilling final message about gun control and how ‘prayers and tears’ were not enough to stop atrocities such as the one he committed.

His ominous social media presence has begun to emerge along with details of his life before he joined the Marines in 2008.

According to former friends and classmates, Long was bullied at Newbury Park High School for his lazy eye and could not take jokes well. One former track coach said he attacked her, groping her backside and stomach once, when she did not give him a phone he said was his.

He hoped to be a professional baseball player but was not talented enough and did not have a good rapport with other members of the varsity team.

One friend said he was ‘cocky’ and was ‘one of those bros who drove a huge car to high school.’

Despite suffering PTSD, Long never sought help from Veterans Affairs. A VA official told DailyMail.com on Friday that he was never enrolled in any of its health programs.

‘God bless all of the victims and families of the victims. Thank you to Law Enforcement,’ they said.

The friend, Rebekah Homokay, told The Wall Street Journal that he set his sights on the Marines because he ‘loved America and loved guns.’

His Facebook post read: ‘I hope people call me insane… (laughing emojis).. wouldn’t that just be a big ball of irony?

‘Yeah.. I’m insane, but the only thing you people do after these shootings is ‘hopes and prayers’.. or ‘keep you in my thoughts’… every time… and wonder why these keep happening…’

The remarkable post, which uses language common to gun control advocates, could not be independently confirmed by DailyMail.com.

Long, a Marine combat veteran who investigators said may have had PTSD, was a regular at the bar where the shooting occurred, several of his friends said.

Long, a Marine combat veteran who investigators said may have had PTSD, was a regular at the bar where the shooting occurred, several of his friends said.

Long is pictured in Instagram footage that one of the survivors filmed while he opened fire on the dark bar and grill. When the first shots were fired, the DJ cut the music and everyone on the busy dance floor scrambled

Long, 28, killed 11 at the Borderline Bar and Grill in California on Wednesday and a cop. He is shown, right, in high school, when he was bullied for his lazy eye

On Friday morning, President Trump said the shooting was ‘horrible’ and made him ‘sick’.

‘It’s a disastrous problem it makes you sick to look at it. He was a war veteran, he saw some pretty bad things.

‘A lot of people say he had the PTSD. That’s a tough deal. It’s a horrible thing. They come back, they’re never the same,’ he said.

He likely would have been aware that the country music bar was a regular gathering spot for survivors of the Las Vegas massacre last year, in which 58 were killed at a country music festival.

Survivors from the Thousand Oaks area regularly gathered at Borderline for mutual support, and considered the bar a ‘safe haven’ after the terrifying shooting in Las Vegas.

Several Las Vegas survivors were present when Long stormed the bar, and one of them, 27-year-old Telemachus Orfanos, was killed.

Many of the dead had no connection to the prior shooting, though, so it is unclear whether Long targeted the bar specifically because of its connection to the massacre in Las Vegas.

Long’s page has been deleted. In a chilling final post written immediately before he launched the attack, he spoke of gun control and how ‘hopes and prayers’ are not enough. His page is pictured before it was taken down

Gunman Long (left and right) was a machine gunner in the Marines Corps and served until 2013 when he was given honorable discharge. He was deployed once to Afghanistan and received 10, standard-issue medals during his service

In his junior year of high school, Long wrote ‘death’ in the section of his year book page (above) for his goals after baseball

Long’s mother took out this ad in his high school yearbook, quoting the children’s book Love You Forever. He was living with her when he committed the shooting and police were called to the residence after a furious dispute between the two in April

Survivors of the Las Vegas shooting held a Route 91 Harvest banner at Borderline earlier this year where they often gathered and developed a ‘family-like’ bond. One of the people killed Wednesday was a survivor of the Las Vegas shooting

Mourners cry and comfort each other during a vigil for the victims of the mass shooting at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza on Thursday in Thousand Oaks, California. Twelve people including a Ventura County Sheriff sergeant died

Long then shot sheriff’s sergeant Ron Helus, a 54-year-old, 29-year veteran who was one of the first on the scene. He died in the hospital of multiple gunshot wounds.

Between 10 and 15 people remain in hospital, some with severe injuries. The mayor has appealed for blood donations, and hundreds responded by turning out to donate.

Survivors used bar stools to smash windows to climb out of and some hid beneath pool tables. One woman ran into the kitchen and was told by staff to climb a ladder into the attic.

According to survivors, Long was dressed in all-black, wearing a baseball cap, sunglasses and a mask covering the bottom part of his face.

Before SWAT teams entered the building, Long took his own life in an office inside.

He used a legally purchased .45 caliber handgun to carry out the attack and had modified its magazine so it could hold more rounds.

In April, police were called to Ian Long’s home in Newbury Park after neighbors heard loud crashes coming from inside the house he shared with his mother Colleen.

She lived ‘in fear’ of him, the neighbors said, adding that Long, who friends have described as ‘cocky’, was ‘hell to live with.’

The neighbors already suspected that he was suffering from PTSD after returning from a tour of Afghanistanbetween 2010 and 2011 and say he was disrespectful and rude whenever he passed them in the street.

When police arrived at the home, they called in mental health specialists to help resolve the situation and, according to The Wall Street Journal, it took hours for them to get Long out of the house.

Vivi Tzavaras, 27, was married to Borderline Bar gunman Ian Long, from 2009 to 2013. Facebook photos reveal Vivi posted a series of sexy pictures (above) on the same day the couple filed a joint divorce petition

Inside, furniture had been tossed all over the house and there were holes in the wall including the one caused by a bullet, they said.

GUNMAN’S MARINES RECORD

2008: Long joins the Marines on August 4, 2008. He was 18 at the time.

2011-2013: His last known assignment was in the 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, Third Marine Division, based out of Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii.

March 3, 2013: Long leaves the Marines. The circumstances are unknown.

2013 – 2016: Long studies at the California State University Northridge and majors in athletic training

‘They couldn’t get him out for a long time, like half the day,’ neighbor Richard Berge said on Thursday.

They had heard gunshots, they said, coming from inside the home and there was a bullet hole in the wall.

Despite the combination of red flags, the mental health specialists who responded decided that Long was not suitable to be involuntarily committed under Section 5150 of the California Welfare and Institutions Code.

He was never arrested and continued living in his mother’s home until Wednesday night’s attack.

Police are yet to reveal why he was not committed after that April incident. The law states that any qualified officer or clinician can confine a person who they suspect has a mental disorder if they are a danger to themselves, others or are ‘gravely’ disabled.

It is also unclear if Long bought the Glock .45 he used in Wednesday’s attack before or after the April incident or if it was the same one he used to put a bullet through the wall.

The gun was legally purchased but Long, who was a machine gunner in the Marines, had modified its magazine so that it could hold 30 rounds, three times the legal limit.

He enlisted in the Marines in 2008 when he was 18 after being told that his dreams of playing professional baseball would never come to fruition.

A shirtless man and two others carry an injured person out of the Borderline Bar and Grill in Thousand Oaks, California, on Wednesday night after Long opened fire at 11.20pm

A bullet hole is seen in the window of the Borderline Bar after a shooter killed 11 inside the country music venue

People kneel around lit candles during a vigil to pay tribute to the victims of a shooting in Thousand Oaks, California

People gather to pray for the victims of the mass shooting during a candlelight vigil in Thousand Oaks on Thursday

People mourn those lost during a shooting in Thousand Oaks during a vigil at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza

WHY WASN’T GUNMAN COMMITTED IN APRIL AFTER ‘FIRING BULLET THROUGH WALL AND HAVING STANDOFF WITH POLICE?’

In April, police were called to Ian Long’s home in Newbury Park after neighbors heard loud crashes coming from inside the house he shared with his mother Colleen.

She lived ‘in fear’ of him, the neighbors said, adding that Long, who friends have described as ‘cocky’, was ‘hell to live with.’

The neighbors already suspected that he was suffering from PTSD after returning from a tour of Afghanistan between 2010 and 2011 and say he was disrespectful and rude whenever he passed them in the street.

When police arrived at the home, they called in mental health specialists to help resolve the situation and, according to The Wall Street Journal, it took hours for them to get Long out of the house.

Inside, furniture had been tossed all over the house and there were holes in the wall including the one caused by a bullet, they said.

‘They couldn’t get him out for a long time, like half the day,’ neighbor Richard Berge said on Thursday.

They had heard gunshots, they said, coming from inside the home and there was a bullet hole in the wall.

Despite the combination of red flags, the mental health specialists who responded decided that Long was not suitable to be involuntarily committed under Section 5150 of the California Welfare and Institutions Code.

He was never arrested and continued living in his mother’s home until Wednesday night’s attack.

Police are yet to reveal why he was not committed after that April incident. The law states that any qualified officer or clinician can confine a person who they suspect has a mental disorder if they are a danger to themselves, others or are ‘gravely’ disabled.

It is also unclear if Long bought the Glock .45 he used in Wednesday’s attack before or after the April incident or if it was the same one he used to put a bullet through the wall.

The gun was legally purchased but Long, who was a machine gunner in the Marines, had modified its magazine so that it could hold 30 rounds, three times the legal limit.

He enlisted in the Marines in 2008 when he was 18 after being told that his dreams of playing professional baseball would never come to fruition.

Under Section 5150 of the California Welfare and Institutions Code, ‘a qualified officer or clinician can involuntarily confine a person suspected to have a mental disorder that makes them a danger to themselves, a danger to others, and/or gravely disabled.’

‘A qualified officer, which includes any California peace officer, as well as any specifically-designated county clinician, can request the confinement after signing a written declaration stating the psychiatric diagnosis that the diagnosing medical professional believes to be the cause or reason why they believe the patient to be “a danger to themselves or others” or the psychiatric disorder that has rendered the patient incapable of making their own medical treatment decisions.’

Meanwhile, other disturbing incidents from Long’s past indicate that his mental troubles may have predated his combat service in Afghanistan.

Julie Hanson, who lives next door to Long’s ranch-style home, described him as ‘odd’ and ‘disrespectful’ well before he left home a decade ago, got married and enlisted in the Marines, becoming a machine gunner.

On Long’s high school yearbook page, under the section for goals after baseball, he simply responded ‘death’.

‘We had kids messing around, saying jokey stuff, but this definitely looks disturbing now. It’s unbelievable,’ Matt Goldfield, who was one of the team coaches that year, told the New York Daily News.

Goldfield and fellow coach Scott Drootin remembered Long as an ‘socially awkward’ kid with ‘sad eyes’ who quit baseball his junior year after striking the final out of a playoff game that dashed his team’s hopes for a championship.

Long enlisted in the Marines at 18 and was married as a 19-year-old in Honolulu in June 2009, according to military and court records.

His military service lasted nearly five years, and he was honorably discharged with the rank of corporal in 2013, the Pentagon said. He was part of the infantry, responsible for hauling and shooting machine guns.

During his service, Long’s marriage fell apart. He and his wife separated in June 2011, while he was deployed on a seven-month tour in Afghanistan.

The couple cited irreconcilable differences in divorce papers filed in May 2013, two months after Long left the Marines.

Long is seen during his military service. He was in the Marines from 2008 to 2013 and served in Afghanistan

After leaving the Marines, Long returned to California. The gunman is pictured in a 2014 picture with his mother (left) and (right) while studying at California State University Northridge where he last attended classes in 2016. He dropped out of his athletic training major in 2016 after three years

Dominique Colell trained Long, 28, at Newbury Park High School when he was a teenager

Curtis Kellog, a friend who he served with, said Long had a ‘great sense of humor’ and was excited to return to southern California after leaving the military.

‘He had a great sense of humor and like most Marines who have seen combat it could get dark at times, just like all of us.

‘He was excited to get out so he could go back home, ride his motorcycle again and finish school,’ he told Click 2 Houston.

Later, he enrolled at nearby California State University, Northridge, dropping out in 2016, the school said in a statement.

‘I found out a little too late that just wasn’t the job for me. Maybe the ego got the better of me but it took only one time for a 19 year old D-2 athlete to talk down to me and tell me how to do my job that I realized this wasn’t the career I wanted to head,’ he said of his departure in a March 2017 post that was uncovered by CNN on the forum Shadowspear.

Blake Winnett, who claims to have shared an apartment with Long in 2014 while he was a student at CSUN, told The New York Post that he was a ‘loner’ who danced alone in their garage.

Police are seen outside Ian David Long’s home in Newbury Park, near Thousand Oaks, on Thursday morning. His mother’s red truck was parked in the driveway beneath an American flag draped from the garage. Their home is 5.5miles from the bar where the attack took place

Coleen Long (right), mother of Thousand Oaks shooter Ian Long, is seen leaving her house in Newbury Park, California

colleen Long (white hat) is seen leaving her home. She was spotted speaking with FBI agents on Thursday

FBI agents collect evidence at the home of suspected nightclub shooter Ian David Long, in Thousand Oaks, California

‘He didn’t want to help anyone do anything. He was just lazy I guess,’ he claimed, adding that he once responded:

‘That’s not my f****** job’ when Winnett asked him to take out the trash.

‘He wasn’t violent but he was mean. He would go to the gym and then he would, I guess, try to learn dance moves or something. ‘He would close the garage and be playing music and dancing in there, like sweating.

‘I would open the garage and would be like, ‘What are you doing?” he said.

More recently, Long was living in his mother’s home, where neighbors said they could hear frequent, aggressive shouting between the two, especially over the last year.

About 18 months ago, Don and Effie MacLeod heard ‘an awful argument’ and what he believes was a gunshot from the Longs’ property. Don MacLeod said he did not call police but avoided speaking with Ian Long.

‘I told my wife, ‘Just be polite to him. If he talks, just acknowledge him, don’t go into conversation with him,” Don MacLeod said Thursday.

Jordan Hopkins places his hand on the photo of Sean Adler during a vigil at the Rivalry Roasters coffee shop Thursday

A picture of victim Noel Sparks is seen during a candlelight vigil in Thousand Oaks, California on Thursday

Sparse pictures on social media showed a happy Long family. His mother, Colleen, posted Facebook photos of her son in his military uniform in 2010 and 2011.

‘My Son is home, well sort of, back in Hawaii, soon to be in Cali come January, hooray!’ she wrote on Dec. 14, 2012.

Another photo from 2014 shows Ian Long with his arm draped around his mother in front of Dodger Stadium. The two were wearing Dodgers T-shirts and smiles.

But about six months ago, a next-door neighbor said he called authorities a when he heard loud banging and shouting at Long’s home.

‘I was concerned because I knew he had been in the military,’ neighbor Tom Hanson said Thursday, as federal and local law enforcement officers searched Long’s house, where an American flag flew over the garage.

Hanson described Long as an introvert and said he was ‘dumbfounded’ by the massacre.

Long’s only other contact with authorities came after a traffic collision and after he alleged he was the victim of a violent encounter in 2015 at another bar in Thousand Oaks, the sheriff said.

Family members are saluted by law enforcement officers after the hearse carrying the body of Sergeant Ron Helus arrived at the medical examiner’s office in Ventura, California on Thursday

Law enforcement officer march as the hearse carrying the body of Sergeant Ron Helus leaves Los Robles Hospital

Authorities haven’t identified what motivated Long to open fire during college night at Borderline Bar & Grill in Thousand Oaks, around 40 miles (64 kilometers) from downtown Los Angeles. The city of about 130,000 people is consistently near the top of lists ranking the safest places in California.

The dead included 11 people inside the bar and a veteran sheriff’s sergeant who was the first officer through the door.

The Marine Corps said Long earned several awards, including a Combat Action Ribbon and a Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, Third Marine Division in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii.

Long’s mother Colleenn Long, 61, was spotted by DailyMail.com being interviewed by FBI agents on Thursday.

She emerged from her house around 1.45pm and was shepherded into another red truck resembling the one the shooter used to drive to the Borderline Bar & Grill where he carried out the massacre. She and several officers left the house in the smart suburb of Newbury Park in a convoy of three trucks.

In addition to the 11 Long killed inside the Borderline Bar and Grill on Wednesday, ’10 to 15′ victims were injured.

A verified GoFundMe page has been set up to help cover their medical bills. They have raised $27,000 of the $50,000 they hope to get.

Victims killed in Borderline Bar shooting in California

Cody Coffman

Cody Coffman’s father Jason confirmed his 22-year-old son was among the 11 dead victims.

The distraught father rushed to the bar after hearing news of the shooting and calls to his son’s cellphone went unanswered. Jason used a tracking app on his son’s phone and it indicated the device was still inside the venue.

He said he spoke to his son just before he went to the bar Wednesday night.

Ventura County Sheriff’s sergeant Ron Helus

‘The first thing I said was ‘Please don’t drink and drive.’ The last thing I said was ‘Son, I love you’,’ he said.

Cody had plans to go into the military and was speaking with U.S. Army recruiters.

Sheriff’s Sgt. Ron Helus

Ventura County Sheriff’s sergeant Ron Helus, 54, was first on the scene of the shooting on Wednesday night.

Helus was shot multiple times as he and a California Highway Patrol officer exchanged fire with the gunman inside the bar.

Alaina Housley

He was a 29-year veteran of the department. He was speaking to his wife Karen when he received the call about a mass shooting.

The last thing he said to her was: ‘Hon, I got to go, I love you. I gotta go on a call’.

Alaina Housley

Alaina, the niece of actress Tamera Mowry-Housley and her husband Adam Housley, also died in the shooting.

Her suitemate at Pepperdine University had earlier posted photos on Twitter saying that the freshman was missing.

Alaina’s Apple Watch and iPhone appeared to still show her location as inside the bar. She was at the bar with several friends who have all been accounted for.

‘My heart breaks. I’m still in disbelief,’ Mowry-Housley wrote in a tribute to her niece on Instagram.

‘It’s not fair how you were taken and how soon you were taken from us. I was blessed to know you ever since you were 5. You stole my heart. I will miss our inside jokes, us serenading at the piano.

‘Thank you for being patient with me learning how to braid your hair, and I will never forget our duet singing the national anthem at Napa’s soccer game.

‘I love you. I love you. I love you. You are gonna make one gorgeous angel.’

Justin Meek

Justin Meek was identified as one of the slain victims by his family and his former college.

The 23-year-old, who was a recent graduate of California Lutheran University, worked at the Borderline Bar and organized the college night event.

Meek is believed to have heroically saved lives as the shooting unfolded, according to university president Chris Kimball.

During college, he worked in the school’s veteran resource office and often worked with the Veterans Club to plan events and help veteran students.

Meek also loved singing in choir and took part in the school’s Kingsmen Quartet.

He planned to join the US Coast Guard.

‘Justin was a criminal justice and criminology major who had a passion for doing what was right,’ Jenn Zimmerman, Cal Lutheran’s veterans coordinator, said in a statement.

‘I’m not shocked he took action to protect the people at Borderline.’

Sean Adler

Sean Adler, 48, was working as a bouncer at the Borderline Bar & Grill when he was killed.

He was a wrestling coach who had only recently opened a coffee shop in the local area.

Sean Adler

Noel Sparks

Noel Sparks, a 21-year-old student at Moorpark College, was also confirmed dead. The United Methodist Church in Westlake Village, of which she was a member, posted condolences to her parents on Facebook.

Sparks’ friends had been in tears throughout the day as they desperately searched for her in the aftermath of the shooting.

Blake Dingman

Blake Dingman, 21, was identified by his girlfriend as a victim of the mass shooting.

‘My sweet Blake… my heart is hurting more than words can say. I cannot believe you’re gone. I am so grateful for our little infinity and all of our deep talks, cuddles, late nights, and adventures,’ she wrote in a tribute.

‘I am so incredibly grateful for every moment we spent together. God brought us together for a reason and I will hold our memories in my heart forever. I love you with all of my heart my sweet boy and my angel.’

Blake Dingman (left) and Telemachus Orfanos (right)

Telemachus Orfanos

Borderline employee Telemachus Orfanos was also among those confirmed dead.

Orfanos was an Eagle Scout who served in the Navy. Friends said that he was a survivor of the Route 91 Harvest Festival shooting massacre in Las Vegas last year, in which 58 died.

Survivors of the Las Vegas shooting regularly gathered in the Borderline bar for country music night as a way of offering mutual support and healing.

Orfanos’ social media indicates he attended the local Thousand Oaks High School and Moorepark College.

Kristina Kaylee Morisette

Morisette worked as the cashier at Borderline Bar and Grill. Family members confirmed that she died in the shooting.

She attended Simi Valley High School.

Kristina Kaylee Morisette

Daniel Manrique

Manrique, 33, was a Marine veteran.

‘He had spent his entire adult life, post military service, helping veterans readjust to civilian life and had just recently accepted a position with Team RWB as the Pacific Regional Program Manager,’ family member Gladys Manrique Koscak wrote in a tribute on Facebook.

‘I have no doubt that he died a hero, shielding others from gunshots. He will forever be our hero, son, brother, and the best uncle anybody could ever ask for,’ she said.

Jake Dunham

Jake was among the missing for hours.

His distraught father kept calling his cell phone after learning about the shooting and grew increasingly concerned when there was no answer.

‘It just keeps ringing out. And he always answers his phone,’ he said on Thursday.

He is thought to have been at the bar with Dingman, who was his friend.

Jake Dunham and Marky Meza Jr.

Marky Meza Jr.

Marky, 20, worked at Borderline as a bus boy and food runner. He grew up in Santa Barbara.

‘Marky was a loving and wonderful young man who was full of life and ambition.

‘His family is devastated by his loss. Marky would have turned 21 on November 19.

‘His family asks for peace and respect at this time to allow them to grieve privately,’ they said in a statement.

Alaina Housley, the 18-year-old niece of ‘Sister, Sister’ actress Tamera Mowry-Housley and her husband Adam Housley, was also killed.

Ventura County Sheriff’s Sergeant Ron Helus, who was first on the scene, was killed after being shot multiple times when he exchanged fire with the 28-year-old gunman, Ian David Long.

Sergeant on Brink of Retirement

Ventura County Sheriff Sgt. Ron Helus was among those killed. He was shot multiple times by the gunman after responding to the first 911 calls and later died in hospital

Ron Helus, 54, was set to retire from the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department next year after 29 years on the job.

He was among the first to respond to calls of a shooting at the Borderline Bar, and was shot multiple times as he and a California Highway Patrol officer exchanged fire with the gunman inside the bar.

Helus was speaking to his wife Karen when he received the call about a mass shooting.

The last thing he said to her was: ‘Hon, I got to go, I love you. I gotta go on a call’.

Devoted Son

Cody Coffman, 22, was killed in the massacre at the Borderline Bar & Grill in Thousand Oaks, California on Wednesday night

Video playing bottom right…

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Cody Coffman’s father Jason sobbed as he confirmed that authorities had told him on Thursday that his oldest son had died.

‘Oh Cody, I love you son,’ he said. ‘This is a heart I will never get back.’

He said he spoke to his son just before he went to the bar Wednesday night.

‘The first thing I said was ‘Please don’t drink and drive.’ The last thing I said was ‘Son, I love you’,’ he said.

Cody had plans to go into the military and was speaking with U.S. Army recruiters.

His father Jason had earlier rushed to the bar after hearing news of the shooting and calls to his son’s cellphone went unanswered. He feared the worst when a tracking app on his son’s phone indicated the device was still inside the venue.

Jason said he was alerted to the shooting when several of Cody’s friends started banged on their front door after 1am.

‘Some of his girlfriends got out but they didn’t know where Cody was,’ Jason said.

Barman Who Rushed to Save Others

Justin Meek, 23, (above) worked at the Borderline Bar as a bouncer and was the organizer of the bar’s country music college night, which was taking place when the gunman struck

Justin Meek was identified as one of the slain victims by his family and his former college.

The 23-year-old, who was a recent graduate of California Lutheran University, worked at the bar where he was killed.

Meek is believed to have heroically saved lives as the shooting unfolded, according to university president Chris Kimball.

‘Justin was a criminal justice and criminology major who had a passion for doing what was right,’ Jenn Zimmerman, Cal Lutheran’s veterans coordinator, said in a statement.

‘I’m not shocked he took action to protect the people at Borderline.’

During college, he worked in the school’s veteran resource office and often worked with the Veterans Club to plan events and help veteran students.

Meek also loved singing in choir and took part in the school’s Kingsmen Quartet.

He planned to join the US Coast Guard.

Las Vegas Shooting Survivor

Borderline employee Telemachus Orfanos was also among those confirmed dead. He survived the mass shooting that killed 58 at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas last year

Borderline employee Telemachus Orfanos, 27, was also among those confirmed dead.

In a cruel twist of fate, Orfanos was a survivor of the Route 91 Harvest Festival shooting massacre in Las Vegas last year.

An estimated 50 to 60 survivors of the Las Vegas shooting were at the Borderline Bar on Wednesday – they often met there for mutual support.

Orfanos was an Eagle Scout and served in the Navy.

His social media indicates he attended the local Thousand Oaks High School and Moorepark College.

Niece of Sitcom Actress

Alaina Housley, the 18-year-old niece of actress Tamera Mowry-Housley and her husband Adam Housley, died in the shooting

Actress Tamera Mowry-Housley and her husband Adam Housley (left) issued a statement saying their hearts were broken following her death

‘Sister, Sister’ actress Tamera Mowry-Housley and her husband Adam Housley revealed that their 18-year-old niece had also been killed.

The couple issued a statement, saying: ‘Our hearts are broken’.

‘We just learned that our Alaina was one of the victims of last night’s shooting at Borderline Bar in Thousand Oaks.

‘Alaina was an incredible young woman with so much life ahead of her and we are devastated that her life was cut short in this manner.’

Mowry-Housley posted this tribute to her slain niece on Instagram after the shooting

The teenager was a freshman at Pepperdine University and had been at the bar with several friends.

Her Apple Watch and iPhone showed her location as still inside the bar in the aftermath of the shooting.

Her uncle Adam, who is a former Fox News correspondent, had rushed to the hospital at 3.30am in search of his niece after hearing reports of the shooting.

‘My gut is saying she’s inside the bar, dead. I’m hoping I’m wrong,’ Adam had told the LA Times before her dead was confirmed.

Two of her friends jumped out of a broken window and ran for safety but say they lost Alaina in the mayhem. They are in hospital being treated for major injuries.

Waitress with Bright Smile

Kristina Kaylee Morisette, who worked as the cashier at Borderline Bar and Grill, was also confirmed dead in the shooting

Kristina Kaylee Morisette, who worked at Borderline Bar and Grill, was also confirmed dead in the shooting.

She attended Simi Valley High School.

Morisette was reportedly working the cash register at the front of the bar when the gunman stormed in and began shooting.

‘The worst things happen to the best people,’ a friend wrote on Twitter. She was such a sweet girl and cared for everyone.

Churchgoing College Student

Noel Sparks, a 21-year-old student at Moorpark College, was also confirmed dead

Noel Sparks’ final Snapchat post

Noel Sparks, a 21-year-old student at Moorpark College, was also confirmed dead.

The United Methodist Church in Westlake Village, of which she was a member, posted condolences to her parents on Facebook.

Sparks’ friends had been in tears throughout the day as they desperately searched for her in the aftermath of the shooting.

Her friend Madison Nenkervis posted a tribute to Sparks on Facebook, writing: ‘one of the Victims of the shooting was a dear Church friend of my families and Such a sweet Amazing soul.’

Nenkervis shared Sparks’ chilling final post on Snapchat from shortly before the shooting.

It showed the dance floor at Borderline half empty, with the caption ‘It’s quite [sic] tonight’.

Entrepreneurial Bouncer

A friend places his hand on a photo of Sean Adler during a vigil at the Rivalry Roasters coffee shop on Thursday. Adler had recently launched the business when he was killed

Sean Adler, 48, was working as a bouncer at the Borderline Bar & Grill when he was killed.

He was a wrestling coach who had only recently opened a coffee shop in the local area.

The married father of two had big dreams for Rivalry Roasters, but stuck with his job working the door at Borderline to ensure he’d be able to support his family.

Adler had dreamed of becoming a police officer, and was training with the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department last year when a heart attack forced him to reconsider his career path.

He is survived by his wife and two sons, ages 12 and 17.

Motorsports Enthusiast

Blake Dingman, 21, was identified by his girlfriend as a victim of the mass shooting

Blake Dingman, 21, was identified by his girlfriend as a victim of the mass shooting.

‘My sweet Blake… my heart is hurting more than words can say. I cannot believe you’re gone. I am so grateful for our little infinity and all of our deep talks, cuddles, late nights, and adventures,’ she wrote in a tribute.

‘I am so incredibly grateful for every moment we spent together. God brought us together for a reason and I will hold our memories in my heart forever. I love you with all of my heart my sweet boy and my angel.’

Dingman played high school baseball at Hillcrest Christian School in Thousand Oaks.

His Facebook page shows his enthusiasm for motorsports, including monster trucks and racing.

Jake Dunham, 21, was also killed

Loyal Friend

Jake Dunham, 21, was also among those killed in the shooting.

He had gone to the bar to play pool with his friends, his father Ken Dunham told NBC Los Angeles.

‘I keep calling it but there’s no answer,’ Ken said. ‘It just keeps ringing out… he always answers his phone.’

Some published reports said that Dunham was at Borderline with his friend, Blake Dingman, who also was among those killed.

Dunham and Dingham were known to be close friends.

Marine Veteran

Marine veteran Daniel Manrique, 33, was another victim confirmed killed in the shooting

Marine veteran Daniel Manrique, 33, was another victim confirmed killed in the shooting.

‘He had spent his entire adult life, post military service, helping veterans readjust to civilian life and had just recently accepted a position with Team RWB as the Pacific Regional Program Manager,’ family member Gladys Manrique Koscak wrote in a tribute on Facebook.

‘I have no doubt that he died a hero, shielding others from gunshots. He will forever be our hero, son, brother, and the best uncle anybody could ever ask for,’ she said.

Frantic Search for Survivors

A shirtless man and two others carry an injured person out of the Borderline Bar and Grill in Thousand Oaks, California, on Wednesday night after a gunman opened fire at 11.20pm

A number of parents rushed to the bar and used tracking devices to look up their children’s iPhones and iWatches.

Many of the devices were still located inside the bar as the parents said they hadn’t heard from their loved ones since the shooting happened.

There were roughly 100 people inside the bar when the gunman opened fire.

Many of those inside were students at Pepperdine University and others are thought to have gone to California Lutheran University – both are Christian schools.

The Ventura County Sheriff’s office said the victim notification process was ‘slow and methodical’. They said they were doing everything possible to notify relatives.

EMTs treat a victim from the shooting at Borderline Bar and Grill on Wednesday. In addition to the 12 innocent people who were killed, another 12 at least were injured

Authorities said Long was wearing a hood and dressed all in black when he used a smoke bomb and handgun to open fire at the bar.

Patrons screamed in fear, shouted ‘get down!’ and used barstools to smash second-floor windows and jump to safety as gunfire erupted at the bar, a hangout popular with students from nearby California Lutheran University.

Authorities said 21 people injured in the shooting had been released from various hospitals by Thursday morning.

Overview

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that’s triggered by a terrifying event — either experiencing it or witnessing it. Symptoms may include flashbacks, nightmares and severe anxiety, as well as uncontrollable thoughts about the event.

Most people who go through traumatic events may have temporary difficulty adjusting and coping, but with time and good self-care, they usually get better. If the symptoms get worse, last for months or even years, and interfere with your day-to-day functioning, you may have PTSD.

Getting effective treatment after PTSD symptoms develop can be critical to reduce symptoms and improve function.

Symptoms

Post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms may start within one month of a traumatic event, but sometimes symptoms may not appear until years after the event. These symptoms cause significant problems in social or work situations and in relationships. They can also interfere with your ability to go about your normal daily tasks.

PTSD symptoms are generally grouped into four types: intrusive memories, avoidance, negative changes in thinking and mood, and changes in physical and emotional reactions. Symptoms can vary over time or vary from person to person.

Intrusive memories

Symptoms of intrusive memories may include:

Recurrent, unwanted distressing memories of the traumatic event

Reliving the traumatic event as if it were happening again (flashbacks)

Upsetting dreams or nightmares about the traumatic event

Severe emotional distress or physical reactions to something that reminds you of the traumatic event

Avoidance

Symptoms of avoidance may include:

Trying to avoid thinking or talking about the traumatic event

Avoiding places, activities or people that remind you of the traumatic event

Negative changes in thinking and mood

Symptoms of negative changes in thinking and mood may include:

Negative thoughts about yourself, other people or the world

Hopelessness about the future

Memory problems, including not remembering important aspects of the traumatic event

Difficulty maintaining close relationships

Feeling detached from family and friends

Lack of interest in activities you once enjoyed

Difficulty experiencing positive emotions

Feeling emotionally numb

Changes in physical and emotional reactions

Symptoms of changes in physical and emotional reactions (also called arousal symptoms) may include:

Being easily startled or frightened

Always being on guard for danger

Self-destructive behavior, such as drinking too much or driving too fast

Trouble sleeping

Trouble concentrating

Irritability, angry outbursts or aggressive behavior

Overwhelming guilt or shame

For children 6 years old and younger, signs and symptoms may also include:

Re-enacting the traumatic event or aspects of the traumatic event through play

Frightening dreams that may or may not include aspects of the traumatic event

Intensity of symptoms

PTSD symptoms can vary in intensity over time. You may have more PTSD symptoms when you’re stressed in general, or when you come across reminders of what you went through. For example, you may hear a car backfire and relive combat experiences. Or you may see a report on the news about a sexual assault and feel overcome by memories of your own assault.

When to see a doctor

If you have disturbing thoughts and feelings about a traumatic event for more than a month, if they’re severe, or if you feel you’re having trouble getting your life back under control, talk to your doctor or a mental health professional. Getting treatment as soon as possible can help prevent PTSD symptoms from getting worse.

If you have suicidal thoughts

If you or someone you know has suicidal thoughts, get help right away through one or more of these resources:

Reach out to a close friend or loved one.

Contact a minister, a spiritual leader or someone in your faith community.

Call a suicide hotline number — in the United States, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255) to reach a trained counselor. Use that same number and press 1 to reach the Veterans Crisis Line.

Make an appointment with your doctor or a mental health professional.

When to get emergency help

If you think you may hurt yourself or attempt suicide, call 911 or your local emergency number immediately.

If you know someone who’s in danger of attempting suicide or has made a suicide attempt, make sure someone stays with that person to keep him or her safe. Call 911 or your local emergency number immediately. Or, if you can do so safely, take the person to the nearest hospital emergency room.

Causes

You can develop post-traumatic stress disorder when you go through, see or learn about an event involving actual or threatened death, serious injury or sexual violation.

Doctors aren’t sure why some people get PTSD. As with most mental health problems, PTSD is probably caused by a complex mix of:

Stressful experiences, including the amount and severity of trauma you’ve gone through in your life

Inherited mental health risks, such as a family history of anxiety and depression

Inherited features of your personality — often called your temperament

The way your brain regulates the chemicals and hormones your body releases in response to stress

Risk factors

People of all ages can have post-traumatic stress disorder. However, some factors may make you more likely to develop PTSD after a traumatic event, such as:

Experiencing intense or long-lasting trauma

Having experienced other trauma earlier in life, such as childhood abuse

Having a job that increases your risk of being exposed to traumatic events, such as military personnel and first responders

Having other mental health problems, such as anxiety or depression

Having problems with substance misuse, such as excess drinking or drug use

Lacking a good support system of family and friends

Having blood relatives with mental health problems, including anxiety or depression

Kinds of traumatic events

The most common events leading to the development of PTSD include:

Combat exposure

Childhood physical abuse

Sexual violence

Physical assault

Being threatened with a weapon

An accident

Many other traumatic events also can lead to PTSD, such as fire, natural disaster, mugging, robbery, plane crash, torture, kidnapping, life-threatening medical diagnosis, terrorist attack, and other extreme or life-threatening events.

Complications

Having PTSD may also increase your risk of other mental health problems, such as:

Depression and anxiety

Issues with drugs or alcohol use

Eating disorders

Suicidal thoughts and actions

Prevention

After surviving a traumatic event, many people have PTSD-like symptoms at first, such as being unable to stop thinking about what’s happened. Fear, anxiety, anger, depression, guilt — all are common reactions to trauma. However, the majority of people exposed to trauma do not develop long-term post-traumatic stress disorder.

Getting timely help and support may prevent normal stress reactions from getting worse and developing into PTSD. This may mean turning to family and friends who will listen and offer comfort. It may mean seeking out a mental health professional for a brief course of therapy. Some people may also find it helpful to turn to their faith community.

Support from others also may help prevent you from turning to unhealthy coping methods, such as misuse of alcohol or drugs.

A mass shooting is an incident involving multiple participants of firearms-related violence. The United States’ Congressional Research Service acknowledges that there is not a broadly accepted definition, and defines a “public mass shooting”[1] as one in which four or more people select someone indiscriminately, and kill them, echoing the FBI definition[2][3] of the term “mass murder“. However, according to the Investigative Assistance for Violent Crimes Act of 2012, signed into law in January 2013, a mass killing is defined as a killing with at least three deaths, excluding the perpetrator.[4][5][6][7] Another unofficial definition of a mass shooting is an event involving the shooting (not necessarily resulting in death) of five or more people (sometimes four)[8] with no cooling-off period.[9][8][10] Related terms include school shooting and massacre.

A mass shooting may be committed by individuals or organizations in public or non-public places. Terrorist groups in recent times have used the tactic of mass shootings to fulfill their political aims. Individuals who commit mass shootings may fall into any of a number of categories, including killers of family, of coworkers, of students, and of random strangers. Individuals’ motives for shooting vary.

Responses to mass shootings take a variety of forms, depending on the context: number of casualties, the country, political climate, and other factors. The media cover mass shootings extensively and often sensationally, and the effect of that coverage has been examined. Countries such as the United Kingdom and Australia have changed their gun laws in the wake of mass shootings. In contrast, the United States’ constitution prohibits laws which disallow firearm ownership outright and owns about half of the world’s guns.[11][12][13]

Contents

Definitions

The characterization of an event as a mass shooting depends upon definition and definitions vary.[14][15] Under U.S. federal law the Attorney General may on a request from a state assist in investigating “mass killings”, rather than mass shootings. The term was originally defined as the murder of four or more people with no cooling-off period[2][15] but redefined by Congress in 2013 as being murder of three or more people.[16] In “Behind the Bloodshed”, a report by USA Today, a mass killing is defined as any incident in which four or more were killed and also includes family killings.[17]A crowdsourced data site cited by CNN, MSNBC, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Economist, the BBC, etc., Mass Shooting Tracker, defines a mass shooting as any incident in which four or more people are shot, whether injured or killed.[9][18] A noteworthy connection has been reported in the U.S. between mass shootings and domestic or family violence, with a current or former intimate partner or family member killed in 76 of 133 cases (57%), and a perpetrator having previously been charged with domestic violence in 21.[19][20] The lack of a single definition can lead to alarmism in the news media, with some reports conflating categories of crimes.[21]

In Australia, a 2006 paper defined a mass shooting as “one in which ⩾5 firearm‐related homicides are committed by one or two perpetrators in proximate events in a civilian setting, not counting any perpetrators”.[22]

Crime violence research group Gun Violence Archive, whose research is used by all major American media outlets defines Mass Shooting as “FOUR or more shot and/or killed in a single event [incident], at the same general time and location not including the shooter” differentiating between Mass Shooting and Mass Murder [Killing] and not counting shooters as victims.[23]

An act is typically defined as terrorist if it “appears to have been intended” to intimidate or to coerce people;[24] a mass shooting is not, in itself, an act of terrorism. A U.S. Congressional Research Service report explicitly excluded from its definition of public mass shootings those in which the violence is a means to an end, for example where the gunmen “pursue criminal profit or kill in the name of terrorist ideologies”.[1]

In addition there have been two mass shootings by Jews in Israel. In 1991, Ami Popper was convicted of murdering seven Palestinian men in a mass shooting carried out in 1990. In 1994 Baruch Goldstein murdered 29 Muslims worshipping and injuring a further 125 in Hebron. Also known as the Cave of the Patriarchs massacre.

United States

However, when adjusting for different population sizes, analysing data between 2009 and 2015 (therefore excluding shootings like the 2016 Orlando nightclub shooting and the 2017 Las Vegas shooting), the US falls to 12th in a comparison between the US and Europe.[31]

In one study by Adam Lankford, it has been estimated that 31% of public mass shootings occur in the U.S., although it has only 5% of the world’s population.[32]CNN cites a study by criminologist A. Lankford that finds that “there are more public mass shootings in the United States than in any other country in the world”.[33] The study concludes that “The United States and other nations with high firearm ownership rates may be particularly susceptible to future public mass shootings, even if they are relatively peaceful or mentally healthy according to other national indicators.”[34] Criminologist Gary Kleck criticized Adam’s findings stating the study fails to provide evidence that gun ownership increases mass shootings and that Lankford has been unwilling to share a list of his cases, provide a list of the number of attacks per country, or even list his sources so that others can check his numbers.[35] Mass shootings have also been observed to be followed by an increase in the purchase of weapons, but this phenomenon seems to be driven by a minority since neither gun owners nor non-owners report an increased feeling of needing guns.[36]

Motives

Mass shootings can be motivated by misanthropy[50] and terrorism and caused by mental illness, inceldom[51][52] and extensive bullying[53] among other reasons.[45] Forensic psychologist Stephen Ross says that extreme anger and the thought shooters are working for a cause, rather than mental illness, is most often the explanation.[54] A study by Vanderbilt University researchers found that “fewer than 5% of the 120,000 gun-related killings in the United States between 2001 and 2010 were perpetrated by people diagnosed with mental illness”.[55]John Roman of the Urban Institute argues that, while better access to mental health care, restricting high powered weapons, and creating a defensive infrastructure to combat terrorism are constructive, they don’t address the greater issue, which is “we have a lot of really angry young men in our country and in the world.”[56]

Author Dave Cullen described killer Eric Harris as an “injustice collector” in his 2009 book Columbine.[57] He expanded on the concept in a 2015 New Republic essay on injustice collectors,[58] identifying several notorious killers as fitting the category, including Christopher Dorner, Elliot Rodger, Vester Flanagan, and Andrew Kehoe. Likewise, mass shooting expert and former FBI profiler Mary O’Toole also uses the phrase “injustice collector” in characterizing motives of some mass shooting perpetrators.[59] In relation, criminologist James Alan Fox contends that mass murderers are “enabled by social isolation” and typically experience “years of disappointment and failure that produce a mix of profound hopelessness and deep-seated resentment.”[60][61]Jillian Peterson, an assistant professor of criminology at Hamline University who is participating in the construction of a database on mass shooters, noted that two phenomena surface repeatedly in the statistics: hopelessness and a need for notoriety in life or in death.[62] Notoriety was first suggested as a possible motive and researched by Justin Nutt. Nutt stated in a 2013 article, “those who feel nameless and as though no one will care or remember them when they are gone may feel doing something such as a school shooting will make sure they are remembered and listed in the history books.”[63]

In considering the frequency of mass shootings in the United States, criminologist Peter Squires says that the individualistic culture in the United States puts the country at greater risk for mass shootings than other countries, noting that “many other countries where gun ownership is high, such as Norway, Finland, Switzerland and Israel . . . tend to have more tight-knit societies where a strong social bond supports people through crises, and mass killings are fewer.” He is an advocate of gun control, but contends there is more to mass shootings than the prevalence of guns.[64]

Social science and family structure

According to Michael Cook and Carolyn Moynihan of Mercatornet,[65] an angle that is missed by mainstream media is the findings of important social scientists such as eminent Harvard sociologist Robert J. Sampson who wrote: “Family structure is one of the strongest, if not the strongest, predictor of variations in urban violence across cities in the United States. The close empirical connection between family breakdown and crime suggests that increased spending on crime-fighting, imprisonment, and criminal justice in the United States over the last 40 years is largely the direct or indirect consequence of marital breakdown.” His views are echoed by the eminent criminologists Michael Gottfredson and Travis Hirschi, who have written that “such family measures as the percentage of the population divorced, the percentage of households headed by women, and the percentage of unattached individuals in the community are among the most powerful predictors of crime rates.”[66]

Based on the research of another social scientist who was himself raised by a single mother, Bradford Wilcox, “boys living in single mother homes are almost twice as likely to end up delinquent compared to boys who enjoy good relationships with their father.”[66]

Moynihan said that “almost all school shooters come from families where the parents are either divorced or alienated”,[65] and Cook argued that “perhaps they wouldn’t need more gun control if they had better divorce control.”[67]

Responses

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it.(November 2017)

Some people have considered whether media attention revolving around the perpetrators of mass shootings is a factor in sparking further incidents.[68] In response to this, some in law enforcement have decided against naming mass shooting suspects in media-related events to avoid giving them notoriety.[69]

The effects of messages used in the coverage of mass shootings has been studied. Researchers studied the role the coverage plays in shaping attitudes toward persons with serious mental illness and public support for gun control policies.[70]

In 2016 the American Psychological Association published a press release, claiming that mass shooting contagion does exist and news media and social media enthusiasts should withhold the name(s) and face(s) of the victimizer(s) when reporting a mass shooting to deny the fame the shooter(s) want to curb contagion.[73]

Some news media have weighed in on the gun control debate. After the 2015 San Bernardino attack, the New York Daily News‘ front-page headline, “God isn’t fixing this”, was accompanied by “images of tweets from leading Republicans who shared their ‘thoughts’ and ‘prayers’ for the shooting victims”.[74][75] Since the 2014 Isla Vista killings, satirical news website The Onion has republished the story “‘No Way To Prevent This’, Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Happens” with minor edits after major mass shootings, to satirise the popular consensus that there is a lack of political power in the United States to prevent mass shootings.[76]

Gun law reform

After the 1996 Port Arthur massacre in Australia, the government changed gun laws in Australia. As in the United States, figures vary according to the definition of “mass shooting”; a 2006 paper used a definition “one in which ⩾5 firearm‐related homicides are committed by one or two perpetrators in proximate events in a civilian setting, not counting any perpetrators”,[22] compared to the usual U.S. definition of an indiscriminate rampage in public places resulting in four or more victims killed. Between 1981 and the passing of the law in 1996 there were 13 mass shootings with five or more deaths; in the following decade, while the new law was in place, there were no such mass shootings.[22] Overall gun deaths have continued to decline for two decades since the law was passed,[77], however there have been several shootings with three or more deaths since 1996 where the victims were related to the shooter.

There were five significant shootings, though not meeting the “mass shooting” definition of the 2006 paper, between 1996 and June 2018:

the Hectorville Siege in 2011 where 39-year-old man Donato Anthony Corbo shot four people on a neighbouring property (three of whom died), and also wounded two police officers, before being arrested by Special Operations police after an eight-hour siege

the Logan family shooting in 2014 of a neighbour family (Greg Holmes, 48, his mother Mary Lockhart, 75, and her husband Peter Lockhart, 78) by Ian Francis Jamieson

the Hunt family murders, in October 2014 when Geoff Hunt murdered four relatives before killing himself

The Osmington shooting in May 2018, involving the death of 7 when a grandfather shot and killed his four grandchildren, his daughter, his wife and then himself.

In the United States, support for gun law reform varies considerably by political party, with Democrats generally more supportive and Republicans generally more opposed. Some in the U.S. believe that tightening gun laws would prevent future mass shootings.[79] Some politicians in the U.S. introduced legislation to reform the background check system for purchasing a gun.[80] A vast majority of Americans support tighter background checks. “According to a poll [Made by CNN] by Quinnipiac University in Connecticut, 93 percent of registered voters said they would support universal background checks for all gun buyers.”[81]

Others contend that mass shootings should not be the main focus in the gun law reform debate because these shootings account for less than one percent of the U.S. homicide rate and believe that these shootings are hard to stop. They often argue that civilians with concealed guns will be able to stop shootings.[82]

Gun control policies may cause a lot of controversy due to divided opinions on who should be able to carry a weapon. An opinion survey was conducted by the firm GfK Knowledge Networks to differentiate between the different attitudes towards gun control. There was a gun policy survey and a mental illness survey. Studies showed that over 85% of those questioned supported national background checks into the mental health records of citizens attempting to purchase a gun. More than 50% of people felt that those suffering with mental health issues were more deviant and threatening than those who had good mental health. The study also proved that there is large interest in contributing to mental health awareness as well as simply prohibiting those suffering from purchasing guns. Nearly two thirds of respondents supported greater government spending on mental health, with more than 60% of people believing this would reduce gun violence in the USA. (Colleen L. Barry, 2013)

As of June 2016, U.S. President Barack Obama had spoken in the aftermath of fourteen mass shootings during his nearly eight-year presidency, repeatedly calling for more gun safety laws in the United States.[83] After the Charleston church shooting, U.S. President Barack Obama said, “At some point, we as a country will have to reckon with the fact that this type of mass violence does not happen in other advanced countries. It doesn’t happen in other places with this kind of frequency.”[84] After the December 2015 San Bernardino attack, Obama renewed his call for reforming gun-safety laws and also said that the frequency of mass shootings in the United States has “no parallel in the world”.[85] After the February 2018 attack at Florida’s Parkland school shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School, the school’s student survivors, teachers, and parents became strong leaders in the effort to ban assault weapon sales and easy accessibility to military weapons.[86]

References …

A headline at Vox.com last week read: “The Cincinnati nightclub shooting shows how more guns lead to more gun violence.”

Since the idea that “more guns lead to more violence” is prevalent in the anti-gun community, we decided to ask author and criminologist John Lott, president of the Crime Prevention Research Center, about that headline and some other aspects of the story.

John Lott: These are all points that I discuss in my new book, The War on Guns. There is a huge gulf between public health researchers and research done by economists and criminologists. Unfortunately, public health researchers use very primitive statistics or conduct their tests in ways that bias their results. They rely on purely cross-sectional comparisons, comparing crime rates in different places at only one point in time. But it’s not possible to accurately account for the differences between different states or countries. Comparisons are commonly made between the United States and the UK, often with the conclusion that the UK has lower homicide rates because of its stricter gun control laws. But it’s unreasonable to assume this causation. After all, the UK had even lower homicide rates before their gun control measures went into effect.I have shown that, even looking only at cross-sectional data over a single year, one will find that the more guns that civilians have, the lower the homicide rate.

Other mistakes are also made. Often, the statistical tests are done incorrectly or the data have errors in them. Here are some problems with the public health discussions about three different areas of crime:

Homicides — Gun possession rates are measured in such a way that make the gun possession rate look much higher in the U.S. than in other countries such as Israel and Switzerland. There is also a failure to clearly distinguish between homicides and murders—a distinction that few in the public are aware of. The difference is that homicides include killings in self-defense. This, too, biases the discussion against the U.S., which has a relatively higher incidence of self-defense.

I have shown that, even looking only at cross-sectional data over a single year, one will find that the more guns that civilians have, the lower the homicide rate. But a much better approach is to look at what happens to crime before and after a change in gun control laws or ownership rates. We can then draw a comparison with places where the laws or gun ownership rates were unchanged. The results of this comparison are pretty clear—more guns mean less crime. The explanation for this relationship is also clear: Gun control laws primarily disarm law-abiding citizens, making it easier for criminals to commit crimes against defenseless people.

Suicides — There are lots of different ways for people to commit suicide, and studies have been unable to find evidence that gun control laws affect overall suicide rates.

Police Deaths — The claim is made that gun control causes a reduction in police deaths. But public health researchers make one crucial mistake in their analysis of the data. Fixing this one mistake reverses their result, and it is hard to believe that the researchers were not cognizant of it.

Suppose that a state’s gun ownership rate is rising at the same time that police deaths are rising nationally. It would be a mistake to attribute the overall rise in police deaths to the rise in gun ownership. To account for that concern, researchers would normally look at how a state’s police death rate changed in comparison to the nation as a whole.

But public health researchers don’t do this. If they had, they would have found that gun ownership reduces police deaths.

A1FD: One section of the story stated: “And, tragically, this is a uniquely American problem in the developed world.” It then further stated: “No other developed country in the world has anywhere near the rate of gun violence that America has.” Isn’t this the same lie former President Barack Obama liked to repeat?

Lott: Yes, and Obama also made similar false claims regarding violence from mass public shootings.

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has the best-known list of “developed countries.” Thirty-five countries are listed. Among them are European countries Slovak Republic and Estonia, both of which have firearm homicide rates significantly higher than that of the U.S. The Slovak Republic’s is three-times higher. Mexico, another OECD member, has had a firearm homicide rate that is three-times higher than the U.S.

Brazil and Russia meet the OECD standards of economic development, but are not full members for various political reasons. Their firearm homicide rates are vastly higher than that of the U.S. Brazil’s rate is more than five-times higher. Russia doesn’t provide a breakdown of specifically firearm homicides, but its overall homicide rate is about 120 percent higher than ours.

Nor are mass public shootings uniquely prevalent in the United States, as President Obama hassuggested at least a dozen times. Even after the November 2015 attacks that left 130 dead in Paris, he had the gall to claim, “I say this every time we’ve got one of these mass shootings: This just doesn’t happen in other countries.” Nor are mass public shootings uniquely prevalent in the United States.

Traditionally, the FBI definition of a mass public shooting required four or more deaths in a public place. The shooting cannot have occurred in connection with another crime, such as robbery. That definition tries to pick up on the sorts of cases that capture big headlines. These are shocking attacks—school or nightclub shootings—that are intended to kill lots of people and generate lots of media attention.

During the first seven years of the Obama presidency, the EU and U.S. shared very similar annual mass public shooting fatality rates (0.083 to 0.088). But the EU’s annual injury rate is more than twice as high (1.33 to 0.61). In fact, total annual casualties per million people were 56 percent higher in the EU than in the U.S.

The broader picture is that places with more guns have lower homicide rates, including firearm homicide.

A1FD: The story never mentioned the fact that the shooting occurred in yet another gun-free zone. Do you find that curious, given the research you have done on that topic?

Lott: How these attacks are reported has a major impact on the gun control debate. Much of the push for gun control occurs in the immediate aftermath of these tragedies. My guess is that the gun control debate would be dramatically different if, even once in a while, the media would mention that yet another attack had occurred in a gun-free zone. Instead, the media focus is so often on what guns were used and how they were obtained. Often, these initial reports turn out to be wrong. The easiest fact to check—whether the attack occurred in a gun-free zone—is virtually never mentioned.

I have tried to get TV producers to cover the issue of gun-free zones, but I was told that it would be “too political.” But it isn’t clear why mentioning the attack has occurred in a gun-free zone would be any more “political” than mentioning the guns used or how the guns were obtained, especially since both of these issues are used to justify new gun control laws.

For additional information dealing with gun control and the Second Amendment, check out John Lott’s newest book, The War On Guns: Arming Yourself Against Gun Control Lies. You can order The War On Guns directly fromamazon.com or barnesandnoble.com.